Expecting a new Labor and Delivery unit at the North Georgia Medical Center Braselton, that is.

The gigantic new wing of NGMC Braselton is set to open to the public Sept. 12. To prepare for the opening, staff of NGMC Braselton rolled out the red carpet Saturday, inviting hundreds of people to tour the unit and learn more.

The new NGMC Labor and Delivery unit contains 10 identical labor, delivery and postpartum rooms, where mothers will remain throughout their stay; two surgical theaters; and a state-of-the-art NICU unit, headed by Dr. Armando Castillo Jr. from The Longstreet Clinic.

All morning and early afternoon, hundreds of people visited the new unit, touring its different natal care facilities and getting info from over 42 different local vendors and nonprofits.

Beth Downs, public relations manager for the hospital, said public interest in the event exceeded everyone’s expectations.

“When we started, we only expected to see three or 400 people, based on the traffic at our Health Fair event last year,” Downs said, “Then we opened registration online and it just grew and grew.”

Downs expects that the new unit had more than 1,000 new visitors tour the facility. There was a line of people at the doors when they opened at 10 a.m.

But this huge amount of interest doesn’t shock her much. In fact, she says that it actually makes sense.

“I think having a baby is a joyful thing and everyone is excited whether you are expecting or not,” says Downs.

Deeper than that, Downs assumes that the success of Saturday’s event “speaks to the need for labor and delivery services in the area.” She anticipates people coming from all the neighboring counties to make use of the new facilities now available to them.

Nurse Manager Megan Cargile says that the hospital is already preparing for a rush of new mothers wanting to deliver at the facility. Cargile explained that the hospital is expecting nearly 700 births in the first year; the first procedure is already scheduled for Sept. 12.

For expectant mother Janna Anderson, the reason to chose the clinic is simple: “New is better,” Anderson said. She explained that her due date will conveniently line up with the opening of the clinic.